


On My Own

by Rynn336



Series: Songs for the Hopeful Heart [15]
Category: Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Fireworks, Fluff and Angst, Light Angst, M/M, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-06
Updated: 2017-02-06
Packaged: 2018-09-22 12:47:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9608195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rynn336/pseuds/Rynn336
Summary: Hey! Look! I'm not dead!These past few weeks have been absolutely hectic. I'm so sorry I haven't been updating this series at all. And it looks like it might be hard to get any updates for any of my works in for a while; I've got a senior project to do and I want to have plenty of time to edit it before it's due. I'm a notorious procrastinator, though, so maybe I'll work on fics anyway.This fic was requested a VERY long time ago. I'm not even sure how long ago. I am so sorry, Semiya. I hope this is okay...I wouldn't want to disappoint you after taking so long to post this.And toHaloKarouKey,Butterfree, andporkcutletfatale, I promise I am going to get to your requests! I'm working on it. But between No Replacements, Voice and Perception, and schoolwork, it may take quite a while. Just know that I haven't forgotten you!The song for this particular fic isOn My Ownby Ashes Remain. I hope you enjoy!





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Semiya](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Semiya/gifts).



> Hey! Look! I'm not dead!  
> These past few weeks have been absolutely hectic. I'm so sorry I haven't been updating this series at all. And it looks like it might be hard to get any updates for any of my works in for a while; I've got a senior project to do and I want to have plenty of time to edit it before it's due. I'm a notorious procrastinator, though, so maybe I'll work on fics anyway.   
> This fic was requested a VERY long time ago. I'm not even sure how long ago. I am so sorry, Semiya. I hope this is okay...I wouldn't want to disappoint you after taking so long to post this.  
> And to [HaloKarouKey](http://archiveofourown.org/users/HaloKarouKey/pseuds/HaloKarouKey), [Butterfree](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Butterfree/pseuds/Butterfree), and [porkcutletfatale](http://archiveofourown.org/users/porkcutletfatale/pseuds/porkcutletfatale), I promise I am going to get to your requests! I'm working on it. But between No Replacements, Voice and Perception, and schoolwork, it may take quite a while. Just know that I haven't forgotten you!  
> The song for this particular fic is [On My Own](https://youtu.be/Fr8IXNtoFNM) by Ashes Remain. I hope you enjoy!

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

Hajime watches the second hand on his watch flit around its face. The Indiglo fades, and he brings his thumb up to turn it on once again, the soft green glow the only source of light in his room. Down the hall, he can hear his mother and Hiro laughing – maybe drunkenly – at something on television.

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

He groans. _Come on!_ Nagito might be one of the most infuriating people Hajime’s ever met, but he’s not selfish. He’ll text back…right?

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

He only has one minute before he’s supposed to meet Kazuichi and Chiaki outside. Nagito knows that. He’s got to text back.

_Tick. Tick. Tick. Beep!_

It’s 9. “Goddammit, Nagito!” Hajime growls, letting his arm flop down beside him. His phone, wedged in between his lower back and the cool wood floor, sits silent and immobile, and he knows his friends must be pretty impatient by now. Kazuichi, at least. It’s not easy for either of them to get away this late at night, and he feels bad that he can’t go with them tonight, but he made a deal. Not that he has to be happy about it. He grabs his phone and unlocks it, navigating to the group message he, Chiaki, Kazuichi, and – to a much lesser extent – Nagito have been using for the past few hours. _Looks like Nagito isn’t coming,_ he types.

_Aw man I thought you guys made a deal!_ Kazuichi replies after only a few seconds.

_We did, so it looks like I can’t go either._

_Youre kidding me._

_Sorry._ He lets the device fall to the floor with a thud and rolls over, propping his head up on his hand and letting the air from the fan he’s plugged into the wall wash across his skin, making him shiver, but it’s much appreciated in the scorching heat of his room. His shirt lies on the floor, crumpled and forgotten, beside his elbow, and he leaves it be. It’s too hot in here for that. Kazuichi responds to his text, but he doesn’t read it.

He really thought Nagito would come. He’s a pretty antisocial kid – he shuts himself in his room most of the time, and he doesn’t really interact with anyone at school besides Hajime and Chiaki, so Hajime thought a good way to get him out of his house was to refuse to go with Chiaki and Kazuichi unless Nagito agreed to go with them, too. Nagito hardly ever thinks of himself first, so as much as he hates social interactions, he would suck it up if not going meant that he’d be depriving Hajime of valuable time with his friends. Or at least, that’s what Hajime thought. He sighs. Maybe he should just go to sleep. He’s too tired and disappointed to stay up playing video games like he usually does.

But just as he pushes himself to his feet, his phone pings, one long, high note that fades just as quickly as it began. He stiffens. That’s the tone he set for Nagito, and only Nagito. He’s a pretty high-maintenance friend; Hajime figured he should probably set a different tone for him to make sure he knows when Nagito needs him for some reason. And maybe, just maybe, he really likes it when Nagito texts him.

_Hey, sorry, I just woke up,_ the message reads.

_It’s 9 at night,_ Kazuichi replies, beating Hajime to the punch.

_Yeah, it’s pretty weird,_ Nagito says.

_Are you coming?_ Hajime types rapidly, excited.

There’s a long pause, and Hajime can feel himself holding his breath, but he doesn’t let it go until the response pops up on the screen. _Yeah, I’m leaving now._

Hajime laughs a loud and pumps his fist in the air, scooping his shirt up off of the floor and stuffing his phone and wallet in the back pockets of his jeans. He turns off his fan and darts out of the room, sailing out the back door to scramble up the chain-link fence, his feet thumping to the cement as he drops down onto the sidewalk. Kazuichi and Chiaki, leaning against a streetlamp a few feet away, jump and whirl around. Chiaki smiles sleepily and Kazuichi grins wide with a friendly wave. “Hey, Haji – ” His gaze drops to Hajime’s shirt, his grin melting. “Red Hot Chili Peppers? You’re kidding me.”

Hajime glares. “They’re great.”

“Yeah, and so is Nickelback.”

Chiaki frowns in confusion. “I like Nickelback.”

Kazuichi groans and throws his hands in the air with exasperation. “I’m surrounded by idiots.”

“I think Ibuki is rubbing off on you,” Hajime remarks.

“Shut up!”

A shoe scuffs the sidewalk and they all look over to see Nagito looking supremely uncomfortable, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his black skinny jeans, wearing a gray t-shirt underneath a dark red flannel shirt - not buttoned up - with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He’s got his hair tugged back into a loose ponytail, but a few rebellious white curls still tumble across his forehead to frame his face.

“You look really nice,” Chiaki says with a small smile.

He scratches the back of his neck, blushing. “Oh…no, I don’t.”

Kazuichi grumbles. He’s never liked Nagito. “Take a compliment, man.”

“Oh, sorry!” Nagito laughs sheepishly.

Hajime looks him up and down. Chiaki’s right. He does look really nice. He looks a lot more than nice. “Isn’t it pretty hot with that flannel on? It’s ninety degrees, or somewhere around there.”

“Um, yeah, maybe a little bit…but it’s okay!”

Kazuichi shakes his head. “Okayyyyyyyyy…where are we going?”

“Ibuki’s party, remember?” Hajime says. “There’ll probably be fireworks outside, too, since there’s a festival downtown tonight. Didn’t you read any of the texts Chiaki and I were sending back and forth? And…I mean, aren’t you two dating?”

“Not really dating…we’re just…interested, I guess. And I was helping my brother repair his car, so…”

“So?” Chiaki tilts her head, her eyes downturned as she rubs the strap of her buttercup-yellow sundress between her fingers.

“So I was distracted.”

“Gearhead,” Hajime mutters.

“What did I ever do to you?”

Hajime shrugs and glances at Chiaki. “If we don’t leave soon, my mom will look out the window and see us.”

“You didn’t tell her you were going out?” Nagito asks. Once more, all of their gazes swing over to him. He smiles uncertainly. “Isn’t that pretty rebellious?”

“Did you tell _your_ parents you were leaving?” Kazuichi asks before Hajime can stop him. Hajime stomps hard on his foot, and Kazuichi yelps. “Ow! What was that for?”

“I don’t know where my parents are,” Nagito says.

Kazuichi freezes. “Oh.” Panicked, he looks around the dark street for some sort of inspiration for a change of subject. “Um, sorry…”

Nagito shrugs, laughing a little. “It’s okay!”

“We should get going,” Chiaki chimes in.

“Yes! Let’s do that!” Kazuichi says, promptly turning on his heel to walk up the street. Chiaki falls into step beside him, leaving Hajime and Nagito to bring up the rear.

Hajime winces at Nagito as they set off. “Sorry about Kazuichi.”

“It’s really okay, I wouldn’t have expected him to know. Besides, he seems like a much better person than me, so it’s not like I can hold it against him!” Nagito smiles – the usual smile. The plastic one.

Hajime sighs and shakes his head. “You’re weird.”

“I know, right?”

“I’m glad you could come.”

“Glad I could come?” Nagito spreads his hands. “I guess that makes sense, actually…with our deal and everything, you wouldn’t have been able to if I didn’t.”

“That’s not actually why.”

“Huh?” Nagito frowns. “Then why?”

Hajime rolls his eyes, sighing exaggeratedly. “You’re clueless.” He prods Nagito’s ponytail with one finger. “What’s with the hair? You never do anything with it.”

Nagito tilts his head. “I can take it out if you want.”

“No!” Hajime shakes his head. “It’s nice. I like it.”

“Gay!” Kazuichi grins back at them, and they both flush bright red.

Chiaki turns to him, her cheeks puffed out, and pushes him forward again, blowing her hair out of her face and jogging until she and Kazuichi are both out of earshot, silhouetted by the city lights ahead.

Hajime clears his throat. “How’s your weekend been?”

“I have to say, you’re really good at small talk.” Nagito smiles. “It was okay. I didn’t do much. What about you?”

“About the same,” he admits. “My uncle wanted to take me to a poker game with his friend, but knowing my uncle…my mom wouldn’t let me. She said she didn’t want me to be ‘corrupted.’”

Nagito laughs. “Isn’t it illegal for us to gamble? We’re not old enough.”

“I don’t think he cares.”

“You talk about him a lot. What’s he like?”

What’s Hiro like? Are there even words to describe him? “He’s one of the dumbest people I’ve ever met. He stays at our house a lot because of my mom’s…you know. He worries about her, and I think he likes being in my life, in his own way. He’s always trying to get me to do weird stuff with him, like gambling or drugs or whatever, and he’s in love with his car. I think he’d marry it if he could. He doesn’t have a wife.”  
“He sounds wonderful.”

Hajime snorts. “That’s…one way to describe him.” Their hands keep brushing, and it’s driving him crazy. Nagito doesn’t seem to mind, though. That infuriating fake smile stays plastered to his face, and Hajime can’t help but wonder if he’s ever actually seen a genuine one from him. “You’re not all that happy to be here, are you?”

“Of course I am! I’m honored you and your friends would invite someone like me to come with you!”

“You are so full of shit. You realize I see right through you, right?”

Nagito laughs. “But I really am!”

“Quit it with all that self-deprecation, will you?”

“What?” Nagito widens his eyes.

“I mean it. You’re no less of a person than the rest of us are, so why do you keep saying things like that?”

“Like what?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about. You know I care about you. You don’t have to keep pretending like I hate you or whatever.”

Nagito’s cheeks burn red. “…Okay, if it annoys you that much.”

“Thank god.”

 

It doesn’t take long to reach Ibuki’s place. She lives just a mile or two away from downtown, in a giant house that looks like it must have been built when the town was still just a small trading hub full of rich investors and merchants. It’s two stories, with dark brown walls embedded with rocks and long emerald tendrils of ivy crawling up a couple of feet to the side of the old maroon garage door. They can hear music all the way from the curb, the bass vibrating beneath their feet, and laughter echoes around the street from the backyard. Kazuichi whoops and launches himself down the driveway toward the gate to the side yard. He’s vanished before they can even think to tell him to wait up. Hajime and Chiaki shrug at each other, grinning with amusement, and start forward, but Hajime stops as he realizes Nagito isn’t following. He waves Chiaki forward and turns to look at his friend. “What’s up?”

Nagito’s eyes are wide, his shoulders rigid as if bracing for some kind of impact. He shakes his head slowly. “I shouldn’t have come.”

But as he begins to back away, Hajime hurries toward him and grabs his hand. “Oh, no, you don’t. Come on. You need to get out of your house. You have no social life.”

“I know, I know, but…” He trails off and his terrified eyes focus on Hajime’s. The look he gives him is so overwhelmed, so full of terror, that Hajime can’t help but feel guilty that he even invited Nagito. “Please don’t make me go in there.”

“But…” He looks over his shoulder. Chiaki stands patiently by the front door, looking totally out of place in her adorable yellow dress, her bangs – just a bit too long – catching on her long eyelashes as she blinks at him, smiling knowingly. When he meets her eyes, she laughs a little to herself and rings the doorbell. The door swings open almost immediately, and she steps inside, letting the door fall closed behind her. Hajime turns back to Nagito and nods. “Alright. But I’m not letting you go home.”

“Thank you,” Nagito breathes. “I’m really sorry, it’s just…”

“Yeah, yeah, come on, let’s go for a walk.” He starts off down the sidewalk once more, but slows when he realizes Nagito is keeping an uncertain distance behind him. “You can walk next to me. You’re even less confident than usual. What’s up with you?”  
Nagito draws up alongside him and shrugs. “I don’t know.”

“Just in a weird mood?”

“Yeah, I guess. Have been all day.”

The corners of Hajime’s mouth quirk up, and he nods in understanding, nudging Nagito’s arm with his shoulder, the world around them goes quiet as Ibuki’s house falls farther and farther behind them. Beside him, Nagito’s eyes gleam dimly in the faint moonlight, his face almost as pale and silver as his hair. “You already look a lot more comfortable.”

“I guess I am!” Nagito spreads his hands, lifting one shoulder. “Thanks to you.”

Hajime thinks for a moment, a smile spreading across his face. “Hey, you know how I said earlier that there might be fireworks tonight because of the festival?”

“…Yeah?”

Hajime grabs his hand and pulls him off of the sidewalk, into the grass of the fields that roll briefly across the countryside beside the road before dropping off into the city once more several hundred yards away. It scrapes against his jeans as he leads his friend farther and farther away from the street, from Ibuki’s, from the city around them, and Nagito is all too happy to comply. But that doesn’t mean he’s any less confused. “Where are we going?” When Hajime first met him that day he and Chiaki quite literally bumped into him on the way home from school, Nagito’d probably be asking if Hajime was leading him here to kill him, or something just as horrifying. “Where are we going” is progress.

“Nowhere in particular,” Hajime says. “You’ll see. Come on. Let’s look for a good spot.”

“For what?”

Hajime stops, but he doesn’t let go of Nagito’s hand. Nagito doesn’t let go of his, either. The grass rustles quietly in the soft evening breeze, the air warm and thick with the scent of damp earth and daisies, the sky deep black and the stars tiny pinpricks of pure white and blue. Hajime almost feels like if he reached up, he could catch a swath of them like cobwebs on his hand. The ground slopes gently downward invitingly, and he nods to himself, plopping down onto the grass and patting the spot next to him, which Nagito uncertainly takes. “What are we doing here?”

Hajime checks the screen of his phone. “I said you’d see, didn’t I?” He grins at Nagito and brushes a shock of white hair out of the other boy’s eyes.

“You did, but…”

Hajime lies back, his arms folded behind his head as he looks up at the sky. “I made you come hang out with me tonight, and if I’m going to get you to get out of your house a little more, I have to make sure that you enjoy it, at least a little bit. Don’t you think?”

“It’s not that I don’t get out.”

“It’s just that you don’t spend time with anyone but me, and even then it’s only if we’re playing video games at my house or something. I know. But that’s got to change.”

They’re silent for a while, waiting. “Sorry for making you leave Ibuki’s,” Nagito says finally.

“It’s fine. There’ll be other opportunities. I should’ve realized how much you’d hate being there.” Hajime looks up at him.

Nagito’s about to reply when they’re interrupted by a loud popping noise. Hajime sits upright rapidly, looking around the sky, as the looks around in confusion. Out of the corner of his eye, Hajime spots an explosion of red and blue, accompanied by more pops, and he scrambles to point it out to Nagito. “Look!”

Nagito follows his gaze, and his eyes brighten, colors flitting across his face as fireworks burst across the sky. “This is what we’re here for?”

“Yeah!” Hajime allows himself a grin. “I never get to watch them. I’m always busy for some reason.”

Nagito doesn’t say anything, totally enraptured by the display, his lips parted, eyes wide, a smile turning up the corners of his mouth. He’s really cute. Hajime’s endured countless jabs from Kazuichi about his tendency to study Nagito in class when he’s biting his thumbnail like he does when he’s thinking, or he’s focused completely on a test like there’s nothing else in the world. But right now, it’s like he’s a totally different person. He looks innocent, fascinated, almost childlike, utter adoration written across his face. This is so much more than Hajime had anticipated. He’s never seen someone so enthralled with something as simple – albeit beautiful – as fireworks. “Have you…never seen fireworks before?”

Nagito glances at him briefly. “Never in person. On television, of course, but never…” He smiles softly. “Never like this.”

Hajime shakes his head in mock irritation. “You _really_ need to get out more.”

“I’m out tonight with you, aren’t I?”

Hajime leans against him gently. “Yeah, you are. Are you glad you came?”

“I didn’t think I would be, but I am.”

Hajime watches the fireworks in the distance for a moment, but when he looks back at his friend, he realizes that Nagito is watching him, grey eyes soft, a tiny smile gracing his lips, and Hajime can’t look away. They stare at each other for a long moment, Hajime’s heart pounding in his chest, his throat, his fingertips, blood roaring in his ears. “Do…do you want to stay the night at my place?” he croaks.

Nagito nods, smiling. “Sure. But not until this is over.”

It’s not totally clear whether he means the fireworks or their…whatever they’re doing, but Hajime doesn’t really care. Somehow their hands have found each other on the grass between them, and Hajime’s started watching the fireworks reflected in Nagito’s eyes instead of the actual display. It’s almost silent, save for the popping explosions, until Hajime’s phone rings loudly, a cheerful xylophone ringtone echoing over the small hill they’ve settled down on. He scrambles to pick it up, Nagito laughing quietly. “Hello?”

The last firecracker explodes in front of them as his mother’s irritated voice comes over the phone. “Hajime. Where are you? Not at a party again, I hope?”

“Oh.” He glances at Nagito with wide eyes. “No, Mom, I’m not. I’m with Nagito.”

“At his house?”

“We’re…watching the fireworks.”

She pauses. “You are? Really?”

“Yeah.” He can feel his cheeks flushing with embarrassment. He wasn’t even going to tell his friends about this, let alone his mother.

“Invite him to stay the night. And come home. Hiro’s gone and it’s high time you got to bed.”

“Mom…”

“Don’t argue with me. You snuck out without telling me. We’ll talk about this tomorrow, believe me.”

He gulps and nods. “Okay. We’ll head home now.” She hangs up, and he turns to Nagito. “Want to head back?”

“Yeah, sure!” Nagito smiles.

Hajime climbs to his feet and holds out a hand to his friend to help him up, and they make their way back to the sidewalk. They don’t let go of each other’s hands all the way back to Hajime’s house. Hajime’s mother is in bed, so they tiptoe to his room quietly and climb into Hajime’s bed. It’s almost midnight now, and Hajime can feel his eyelids drooping, Nagito impossibly warm beside him, and he falls asleep to the even, soft sound of his friend’s breath and the whir of the fan in his corner.

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, that was much longer than I usually write. That was fun, though!  
> Don't forget to leave a song if you want me to write to one! Thanks for reading!


End file.
